Are you losing thousands of dollars on unnecessary prints and costly toner and ink each year? Do you have the data to answer with confidence?
Running a business is costly. There are expenses around every corner. Running a successful business means keeping expenses as low as possible, while also ensuring maximum efficiency.
Office printing equipment is a costly investment, and oftentimes businesses buy machines that do not adequately suit their needs - now or for the future. Whether they purchase a printer model that comes with all the bells and whistles that are rarely used, or they buy a lower end model that is not able to do everything that is required, needs are not being met. One of the most costly areas we see is businesses buying low end printers online or from the big box store for very low cost and they spend a fortune on toner per month. They could have bought a full functioning commercial unit and saved huge each month on operation cost. Lease the right unit for less than what is being spent on ink and toner a month.
Most mid-to-large size organizations have a whole host of multifunction printers (MFPs), but not all have a comprehensive inventory of where they are located, how they are being used and how much they're costing to operate. This is all critical information for operating at maximum cost efficiency.
Unless you’re an expert, choosing the right machines to suit your entire business’ needs can be incredibly overwhelming. And buying the machines is the easy part - keeping them running? Not so easy. Consider how much time is wasted dealing with faulty machinery. If it takes five minutes to clear a paper jam in your printer, and it happens three times per week, that’s 13 hours per year spent fixing a malfunctioning machine. Reactive maintenance leads to device downtime, increased costs, and operational inefficiencies.
That’s why many businesses choose a servicing plan to go along with their machines.
The two main types of service plans are Cost Per Copy (CPC) and Managed Print Services (MPS). The two services are very similar, in that you pay a certain cost per usage of the copier or printer, but there are some significant differences.
Cost Per Copy Services
With Cost Per Copy Services (CPC), you pay for the pages you print, and your provider will service and maintain the machine in the event of a breakdown. It’s usually a basic servicing agreement - the monitoring and delivery of ink and toner are not included in CPC services, and neither is a strategy for maximizing speed and efficiency at the lowest cost. Many vendors are monitoring toner and delivering but few would be analyzing the overall fleet for efficiencies. Reps just sell the big copiers and ignore the printers for the most part
Most CPC service providers will identify what your monthly print volume is, provide the right equipment, and establish a monthly volume and CPC. For example, based on current usage, the monthly contract might be 5,000 pages printed in black and white at a cost of $0.02 per print page and 2,000 pages for colour at $0.12 per page ($340/month). Should you print over those contracted amounts, overage fees will then apply.
Managed Print Services
Managed Print Services (MPS) offer a much broader range of services than CPC. MPS allows you to monitor and control your business printing, helping you save money, decrease your environmental footprint, and improve your document security.
The first step with any MPS provider is usually conducting an infrastructure assessment to determine business needs, current printer usage, existing hardware and software systems, associated costs, and challenges that the company is facing with its current operations.
Your MPS provider will then create a customized strategy, tailored to fit your exact business needs and goals. The strategy will cover equipment placement, print volume, print rules, and more to reduce costs and set your system up so that you can effectively manage the print devices across your network. The strategy might, for example, suggest consolidating machines, saving a significant amount of money.
Most MPS plans also include service and maintenance of your machines, plus delivery of ink and toner before you run out - determined by remote tracking of supply levels. For many businesses, this set-it-and-forget-it type of plan provides peace of mind and is an incredibly valuable and cost-effective means of managing printer services. It’s not set in stone either - if print usage changes, either greater or lower, the plan can be adapted to suit, ensuring you're always operating with the most cost-effective combination of machines and services.
Why Managed Print Services?
Bottom line? Managed Print Services can save your business time and money - both precious resources in any company. In fact, when a business utilizes the right combination of office equipment and software it can lead to significant savings on their in-office printing - as much as 50% for some of our clients!
At innov8, our approach to managed print services is strategic and innovative, and our service team consists of only the best-skilled service technicians. They will take care of your office equipment servicing and maintenance, and you can take care of what you do best - running your business!
